Documentation Services News

The Palau International Ship Registry (PISR) has opened a new head office in Piraeus, Greece. Panos Kirnidis, CEO of PISR, said, “We have spent time finding and employing people around the shipping world who add value to our services and come with a sense of dedication we demand. During the years of our operations we have come into contact with many professionals whose skills we now use for our clients. We have more than 30 Deputy Registrars worldwide and if needed, we can source surveyors, engineers and legal experts to handle any issue that arises for ship owners and managers.

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) has awarded a follow-on $9 million Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) to ABSG Consulting Inc., an ABS Group company (ABS Group). ABS Group will provide a range of Human Systems Integration (HSI) support to the USCG's Human Systems Integration Office (CG-1B3), which is the USCG's technical authority for human systems integration (HSI). The BPA will cover acquisition support, project identification, usability analyses, testing, user facilitation and documentation services. As the USCG embarks on several new acquisition programs, including the Offshore Patrol Cutter and the Polar Ice Breaker, ABS Group will assist CG-1B3 and its partners within the USCG Acquisitions Directorate (CG-9)…

Intermarine, LLC, a transporter of project, breakbulk and heavylift cargo, announced it has opened an office in Quito, Ecuador. The new office will operate in partnership with agent Tradinter as part of the company’s Americas division to provide pricing, customer and documentation services to regional clients. The office is positioned to service clients on the northern portion of Ecuador, including, but not limited to the provinces of: Pichincha, Esmeraldas, Imbabura, Carchi and Santo Domingo. Intermarine said the location was specifically established to align the service requirements and objectives of the West Coast South America line to those of the customers, resulting in better and quicker assistance, pricing and service.

The U.S. Coast Guard's final rule on vessel documentation renewal fees was published in the Federal Register Tuesday. The Coast Guard is amending its regulations to separately list an annual fee for renewals of endorsements upon the Certificate of Documentation. The Coast Guard is required to establish user fees for services related to the documentation of vessels. This final rule separately lists a fee of $26 to cover the current costs of the vessel documentation services provided by the Coast Guard.

Included in the latest listing of contracts awarded by the US Department of Defense, Navy, are two contracts with General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine. This is a $28,716,385 delivery order under a previously awarded basic ordering agreement (N00024-12-G-4330) for the accomplishment of fleet maintenance sustainment support for fiscal 2014. Work will be performed in San Diego, Calif., and is expected to be completed by September 2014. The Southwest Regional Maintenance Center, San Diego, Calif., is the ordering/contracting activity.

Classification society Russian Maritime Register of Shipping (RS) said it has established an expert group for rendering technical documentation services for seagoing ships in operation. The new group is responsible for the development and review of the documents related to determination of permissible scantlings of hull structure members according to the RS Rules; check of the ship's hull compliance with the RS Rules; enhanced survey program of hull structures in compliance with the IACS Unified Requirements (Z10.1, Z10.2, Z10.3, Z10.4, Z10.5, IMO Resolution 744(18), as amended) and assessment of ships stability according to the RS Rules when accepting the ships into the RS class.

American Overseas Marine Corp., of Quincy, Mass., and Bath Iron Works Bath, Maine, awarded Navy contract modifications. The U.S. American Overseas Marine Corp is being awarded a $14,502,237 modification under a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00033-10-C-5300) to exercise a one-year option period for the operation and maintenance of seven large, medium speed, roll-on/roll-off ships. When activated, these ships will transport equipment in support of deployed U.S. military forces worldwide. Work will be performed in waters worldwide, and work is expected to be completed by April 2014. Bath Iron Works , is being awarded a $12,599,317 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-09-C-2302) to exercise an option for Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Class Design Services.

As discussed in a recent article, the USCG is now talking openly about centralizing the nationwide administration of the licensing and certification of seamen and officers into one location (the actual examinations will be "privatized"). They speak of the success they have had performing this feat for the vessel documentation offices and now want to repeat if for the licensing system. Obviously, they have forgotten the problems that occurred with the centralization of vessel documentation and for reasons of their own are reluctant to admit they will probably have serious problems with this new venture because of the different clientele. In 1995, the USCG centralized the vessel documentation process into one office located in Falling Waters, W.V.

Increased user fees for merchant marine licenses and Merchant Mariner Documents (MMDs) will take effect October 4. The USCG had proposed the fee increases in April 1998, following a court order resulting from a lawsuit brought by the Seafarers International Union (SIU) of North America. While the SIU lawsuit sought to prohibit the USCG from collecting user fees for mariner licensing and documentation, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia affirmed the USCG's authority to issue the fees and ordered the agency to recalculate the cost of providing licensing and documentation services. Completed in October 1996, that recalculation indicated USCG costs to provide licensing services exceeded the fees charged to mariners in most cases…

Increased user fees for merchant marine licenses and Merchant Mariner Documents (MMDs) will take effect October 4. The USCG had proposed the fee increases in April 1998, following a court order resulting from a lawsuit brought by the Seafarers International Union (SIU) of North America. While the SIU lawsuit sought to prohibit the USCG from collecting user fees for mariner licensing and documentation, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia affirmed the USCG's authority to issue the fees and ordered the agency to recalculate the cost of providing licensing and documentation services. Completed in October 1996, that recalculation indicated USCG costs to provide licensing services exceeded the fees charged to mariners in most cases…